


A Light in Dark Places

by Freedom_Shamrock



Series: ML Fluff [2]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-17
Updated: 2016-11-17
Packaged: 2018-08-31 14:24:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8581933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Freedom_Shamrock/pseuds/Freedom_Shamrock
Summary: School is let out early due to a severe storm, and our four favorite Parisians decide to spend the time together.  Plotless fluff.





	

Marinette grabbed both Adrien and Alya by the hands as the first fat drops of rain started to fall. "Come on!" she shouted, tugging them behind her. "We're going to need to run if we don't want to get soaked." She glanced back to see that Alya latched on to Nino's wrist, including him in the friendship train. As one, they ran down the sidewalk toward the bakery. Her luck held up, and the crosswalk lit up just as they approached.

Lightning arced across the sky in a bolt that brightened the gloom for just a moment. The raindrops were coming more rapidly now. The sharp crack of close thunder made Marinette tighten her grip on her friends in surprise. They reached the cover of the corner awning just as the clouds decided to let loose. She beamed at her friends. "Made it!"

Alya laughed, caught up by her best friend's glee. "Good thing you live so close."

"Yeah," Adrien agreed as he stepped aside to open the door without pushing any of them out into the downpour. "Thanks for inviting us over." School had let out early due to the severe storm, and he hadn't been able to reach his driver. When Marinette heard he'd be alone anyway, she'd invited them all over.

"I love thunderstorms," she admitted, leading them into the bakery. "Mama, baba, I'm home."

"Did you make it before the rain?" her mother called back.

"Just barely." Marinette grinned. "Alya, Adrien, and Nino are going to wait out the storm with me."

"Feel free to help yourselves from anything from the cases," her father said, stepping out of the kitchen. "I don't expect we'll see much business for the rest of the day anyway. Your mother and I are going to take the opportunity to reorganize a bit."

After grabbing snacks, Marinette lead her friends up to their flat. "So what do you want to do?" she asked, setting out dessert plates and napkins.

"You said you like thunderstorms," Adrien said, snatching a pain au chocolat off the plate. "What do you usually do?"

"I like to bake when it's cold and wet out." She shrugged. "It just makes things warmer and cozier."

"We could do that," Alya suggested, hopping up on one of the stools in the kitchen. "Mari makes the best cupcakes." She closed her eyes and tipped her head back as she hummed.

"We're in a bakery," Nino said. "Why make them when they're already here?"

"The making is part of the fun, silly." Marinette rolled her eyes. "The warmth and the smell fills the whole house."

"I like the sound of that," Adrien said eagerly. "Can I help?"

"Mari, my boy can not bake," Nino said in a loud stage whisper. "I don't think he can even boil water."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Adrien snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "And I probably **could** boil water... or bake, if I had directions."

Alya laughed. "Well, we know you're great at following directions, so you've got a point."

"It's just chemistry." Marinette reached out to pat Adrien's shoulder, something she could never have done a year and a half ago. Then again, she wouldn't have been able to string three words together, either. "You're really good at chemistry. You'll be great at this," she assured him.

Adrien looked smugly at Nino. "Mari's my new best friend. **She** has faith in me. Unlike some people."

"Excellent," Alya said. "Since we can't all fit in the kitchen, you two do the baking. Nino and I will do clean up." She tugged her boyfriend over to the television. "Let's put on the news to see what they're saying about this storm."

"I'm surprised you need a recipe," Adrien said, as Marinette clipped the card to one of the cupboards, where it could be easily seen. "Don't you have it memorized?"

"I have a lot of them memorized." She cast him a sly glance. "But those are all industrial sized batches, and we don't need forty cupcakes."

"I'd eat forty cupcakes!" Nino called from the couch.

"Then you'd puke," Alya said, pinching his side gently.

Adrien's laugh was such a joyful sound, and he didn't do it nearly as often as he should. Marinette made a point to try to evoke it whenever she could. After an akuma attack involving an angry fangirl, she'd done some serious thinking about her own motivations and perspective of the model. When she made herself see that he was human and fallible, and really looked at him, she'd been horrified to realize how lonely he really was. More than anything else, he needed friends and normal experiences. She'd taken down the schedule and the posters, and embraced the idea of being his friend first. It hadn't killed off her crush, but is brought her emotions and ideas more in line with reality.

"Do you know how to read a recipe?" Marinette asked, flicking the card with her index finger.

He shook his head, looking a little embarrassed.

"It's okay," she insisted. "Lots of kids don't know how." She pulled out a silver scale. "We'll start by getting out all the ingredients. That way, we know we aren't missing anything, and we won't forget to add something."

It was easy to teach him about ingredients and measurements because he was so quick to pick things up. His delighted smile as he worked, triggered a happy twinge in her chest. His first attempt at cracking an egg was a mess, and she giggled when he looked at her, wide-eyed and alarmed.

"Sorry," he winced, his hands freezing over the crushed egg, half inside the bowl and half outside the bowl, shell everywhere.

She reached to cover his hands with hers. "It's okay. It takes practice."  
"Dude, you should see how Mari cracks eggs," Nino said, a hint of awe in his voice.

"Really?" Adrien asked, timidly meeting her eyes.

"No," she said sternly. "You know that's not fair, Nino. I grew up in a bakery." She quickly scooped up the mess, dumping it in the sink. She set a small clear bowl on the counter and handed Adrien another egg. "You can do this," she promised. "But it takes practice to know just how hard to hit it."

He bit his lip and stared at the egg in his hand. "So that was too hard, right."

"Yeah," she agreed, holding back a giggle that wanted to escape. "But it's okay. Mistakes don't matter here, okay?"

The way he froze confirmed that she'd caught his biggest concern. It had taken her a while to figure out why he was so good at everything. At his house, mistakes weren't allowed. He was expected to excel. Anything less was unacceptable. It was an absurd amount of pressure, and it brought down her impression of his father a lot. "Okay."

"Mistakes just mean you're trying something new, and at the Dupain-Cheng house, they are encouraged." She nodded firmly.

"Oh god. You should see Mari's bin of failed designs," Alya suggested, joining Nino at the counter where she could watch what was happening in the kitchen.

"Yes. Thank you Alya for that wonderful suggestion," Marinette said, heavy handed with the sarcasm. "Seriously, though. You guys see me fail at stuff all the time. Like walking. I'm terrible at that. Oh, and using steps."

"Doorways," Nino offered. "You've clipped a couple in passing.

"A couple?" Alya demanded with a cackle. "Are you counting plain missing the doorway and walking into the wall next to it?"

"That gets its own category." Nino shook his head, managing to look totally serious. "I wasn't going to bring it up. Seemed kinda mean."

"Does this mean I don't get to see your… what was that?" Adrien glanced at Alya. "Bin of failed designs?" He turned to Marinette, gazing at her with wide pathetic eyes.

"Ack!" Marinette threw her hands in front of her face. "No. No kitten eyes! We've talked about this, Adrien. You are **not** allowed to use your enormous perfect eyes for evil."

"But… Mari," he whined. "I want to see the bin. You got to see me smash egg all over the counter. It's a serious blow to my self esteem."

"Don't joke about your shitty self esteem, bro," Nino said sternly. "It's **so** not funny."

"Sorry," Adrien said quickly, but he didn't turn off the kitten eyes.

"Ugh." Marinette glared at him. "Fine. When the cupcakes are cooling, I will take you up to explore the bin of shame."

"Yay! I win!" He bent over the counter and tried cracking the second egg. It went better, and he only had to pick out a tiny bit of shell.

By the time they pulled the cupcakes out of the oven, the whole house smelled delicious.

"Mari, don't you have something to show Adrien while we clean up?" Alya suggested, her eyebrows wiggling.

Marinette shook her head. "Fine." She gave Adrien a stern glare. "What you're about to see represents the extreme end of my experiments… or the ones that didn't work. I'll tell you what I was trying to do, and show you how they turned out. You're allowed to laugh when you see them. But…" She paused for emphasis, her finger shaking at him. "Once the cover goes back on the bin, we don't speak of the horrors within ever again. Got it?"

"Yes." His eager grin was nearly blinding.

"And you're responsible for your own therapy costs," she added as she headed for the stairs. "I should probably have you sign a waiver or something."

The rain pelting her windows and the nearly constant rumble of thunder were much more noticeable in her room. The rain was so heavy she could barely see the yellowy glow of the streetlights below. A chill ran up her spine, and she turned back to the golden warmth of her room. Adrien was still running his fingers over one of her failed projects before folding it and adding it to the bin. Though she'd given him permission to outright mock her mistakes, he'd listened carefully to her explanations of her goals and how they played out. He asked questions about the ideas and construction process. He marveled over a dress that hung funny, a shirt that bunched up between the shoulders, and an asymmetrical skirt that just looked incomplete. He'd picked cautiously at fabric that unraveled unexpectedly or snagged in her machine marring the final look.

"Are you really embarrassed by these?" he asked, slipping the cover on the bin for her.

"A little." She shrugged. "It's not the most fun to see how madly I messed up."

"So why keep them?" He was definitely puzzled.

"They remind me of mistakes so I don't repeat them." She sat down next to him on the chaise, now that the disasters were put away. "They also remind me what I've learned and how far I've come." She glanced up, surprised by the intensity on his face. "When things are going wrong, or I can't come up with anything good, I look at these and see how much more I know now." She re-opened the bin and pulled out a layered dress. "I learned enough making this that I was able to do it right on my second try."

"Mari, are we frosting these?" Alya's voice carried up through the open trap door.

"I vote we eat them as is," Nino added.

"Ohmigod Nino! We are **not** eating naked cupcakes," Marinette said, as though the very suggestion was somehow obscene.

"I can't wait," Nino moaned theatrically. "They smell so good."

She looked at Adrien, catching his eyes before she hit the top step. "You want to help with the frosting?"

His contemplative expression was replaced by sunshine. "If they're not truly done without frosting, I should probably finish the job."

After whipping up a quick buttercream, Marinette walked Adrien through filling a pastry bag and frosting the cupcakes with quick circling of the wrist. "This is a lot like cracking an egg," she cautioned. "It takes time to get just the right amount of pressure."

His first attempt was a little light and uneven on frosting. The second was better. The third was ridiculously over the top. "I get this one, right?" he asked, holding it up with a smirk that oddly reminded her of Chat Noir. "I mean, I did all the work, so I should get first pick, right?"

Marinette giggled, eyeing up the absurd heap of white sweetness. "Sure. Or would you rather I just get you a bowl of frosting?"

His eyes widened, "Would you?"

"Don't do it Mari," Nino cautioned. "Adrien on a sugar high is kinda terrifying."

"And it'll be twice as bad, since we're confined in a small space," Alya added.

Adrien scowled across the kitchen island at them. "No spoiling my fun."

"Sorry, I think they have a good point." Marinette patted his arm. "That," she gestured to the cupcake in his hand, "will just have to tide you over this time." She turned back to the counter and poured colorful sprinkles into yet another a small clear bowl. "Here, you can add these once you're done with the frosting."

"Oh, hey." Adrien pointed at her cheek. "You've got something on your face. Close your eyes."

She felt something cold and wet swipe high on her cheek, and her eyes snapped open. Adrien stood too close, his lower lip between his teeth, and mischief clear on his face. She was vaguely aware of Alya and Nino laughing like they'd just witnessed the funniest thing.

"Oops," Adrien whispered, not even pretending to sound sorry. "I made it worse."

She gawked at him. Sure, they'd both gotten pretty friendly in the last few months, and she could see how their playing and teasing might be seen as flirting. But this was some next level stuff. She knew her face was bright red, and she could feel the hard thudding of her heart in the center of her chest. "Did… did you…" She broke off, unsure if she could spit out a sentence that wouldn't be immediately misread as lewd.

"Sorry," he whispered, that gleam still prominent in his eyes. "Can I fix it?"

She shrugged. "Fine. Just don't make it worse."

Without looking away, he set the pastry bag on the counter. His hands came up to cup her chin, gently guiding her to tilt her face just so. At the touch of his fingers against her skin, she froze, holding her breath without meaning to. He admired his handiwork for a moment, then leaned in and removed the frosting from her cheek with a slow caress of his tongue.

She heard a strangled gasp, vaguely registering it as her own, and her hands darted up to clutch at his arms. Later she would remember Alya's catcalls and Nino's wolf-whistle, but for the moment, she was only aware of herself, tingly and hot all over, and Adrien, still standing way too close, his thumbs brushing her jaw.

"I always knew you were sweet." He grinned at her, looking way too pleased with himself. "It would be accurate to call you sweet cheeks."

There was a thump as Nino laughed himself off the stool.

**Author's Note:**

> This started out with the prompt "watching the weather from inside" but morphed into "food/cooking/meals." I blame the numerous interruptions from barfing dog. This did not go where I planned it to, and it really has no plot. So it's like cotton candy. Sweet but without much substance. Don't get it wet; it'll melt.


End file.
